A few of the Wiltshire RoSPA tutors a couple of times a year camp and ride, it’s usually the same few of us and we have covered much of the U.K. The typical format is meet up on a Friday and ride for lunch and on to a campsite, preferably close to a pub. On the Saturday we ride most of the day before a few refreshing ales and dinner. Sunday head home. There have been a few exceptions where the trip has required us to stay at several sites, such as the three highest pubs which we did last year.
This year we met at my house nr Salisbury and rode down the A30 to Honiton for an agreeable coronation chicken baguette. A373 to Tiverton, where we picked up the rather excellent A396, our tale end Charlie thinks we were followed by an unmarked Police rider on a Kawasaki sports bike. Next was the even better B3223 followed by the A39 to Lynton. The campsite was the excellent Caffyns Farm, possibly one of the very best sites we have used. The only small criticism was they stopped serving meals at 1830. The scrumpy brewed on the farm is excellent.
Saturday morning at 0830 we all had the Big Barn Breakfast, we rode many skinny lanes eventually ending up in Mortonhampstead for a coffee. As we all needed fuel, Morrisons at Tavistock was the next destination followed by the always reliable Fox Tor cafe at Princetown for a hand carved ham baguette and coffee. As we were getting tired we decided to take the direct route back to Caffyns Farm, at times I wished I was on the Himalayan not the Multistrada and felt guilty I was dragging Andy on his Pan European.
Back at the campsite we ate dinner and had another early night. It rained fairly hard a couple of times but was dry at 0700 when we got up, so packed up and left before the cafe was open. It was misty and rained all the way to Tiverton where we gave in and had McDonalds for breakfast, or their version of it.
After breakfast we split up with the others heading up the M5, I took the A38, turning up Monument road nr Wellington then to the A303.
310 miles, much of it on challenging roads in Devon, some of which are just as technical as many mountain roads in the Alps, Pyrenees etc, obviously much shorter. If your time is limited and you are within striking distance of Exmoor/Dartmoor there are masses of great roads, give it a try.
This year we met at my house nr Salisbury and rode down the A30 to Honiton for an agreeable coronation chicken baguette. A373 to Tiverton, where we picked up the rather excellent A396, our tale end Charlie thinks we were followed by an unmarked Police rider on a Kawasaki sports bike. Next was the even better B3223 followed by the A39 to Lynton. The campsite was the excellent Caffyns Farm, possibly one of the very best sites we have used. The only small criticism was they stopped serving meals at 1830. The scrumpy brewed on the farm is excellent.
Saturday morning at 0830 we all had the Big Barn Breakfast, we rode many skinny lanes eventually ending up in Mortonhampstead for a coffee. As we all needed fuel, Morrisons at Tavistock was the next destination followed by the always reliable Fox Tor cafe at Princetown for a hand carved ham baguette and coffee. As we were getting tired we decided to take the direct route back to Caffyns Farm, at times I wished I was on the Himalayan not the Multistrada and felt guilty I was dragging Andy on his Pan European.
Back at the campsite we ate dinner and had another early night. It rained fairly hard a couple of times but was dry at 0700 when we got up, so packed up and left before the cafe was open. It was misty and rained all the way to Tiverton where we gave in and had McDonalds for breakfast, or their version of it.
After breakfast we split up with the others heading up the M5, I took the A38, turning up Monument road nr Wellington then to the A303.
310 miles, much of it on challenging roads in Devon, some of which are just as technical as many mountain roads in the Alps, Pyrenees etc, obviously much shorter. If your time is limited and you are within striking distance of Exmoor/Dartmoor there are masses of great roads, give it a try.
I live on the 3157 
